CocaCola and Pepsi top list of world’s 100 mega brands in 2017

UNITED STATES - APRIL 15: Cans of Pepsi and Coke are set up for a photograph in New York on April 15, 2004. PepsiCo Chief Executive Steve Reinemund introduced Gatorade X-Factor flavors and added Tropicana juice drinks, moving faster than rival Coca-Cola Co. to cater to health-conscious consumers. (Photo by Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

CocaCola and Pepsi are first and second on the list of the world’s 100 mega brands, according to Euromonitor International’s megabrands report that ranks the top 100 most successful fast-moving consumer goods (fmcg) brands worldwide.

In the report launched Tuesday, fmcg encompasses packaged food, soft drinks, beauty and personal care, consumer health, tissue and hygiene, home care, hot drinks and pet care. Each of the brands making it into the top 100 qualifies based on their retail sales value for the year 2017.

While several major brands have maintained their ranking for some time, the report says the balance across the list is shifting. “People’s attitudes to health and premiumisation are evolving and brands that cannot meet new realities have lost out. Changes in how people research and shop online are having a profound impact. Also, the importance of different regions of the world has changed for many of these megabrands, raising the question of where companies should focus their resources most effectively,” it says.

In 2017 megabrands made up 14 per cent of all fmcg sales worldwide. According to the report, it was primarily driven by sales of packaged food, beauty and personal care, and soft drinks brands.

There are 41 packaged food brands in the top 100, more than any other category. Beauty and personal care brands take second position, with 25 brands in the top 100. Soft drinks brands are third, with 18 in the ranking. Beyond these three categories, 16 brands make the top 100, with five tissue and hygiene brands amongst them.

Asia Pacific accounts for the single biggest percentage of fmcg sales by region, with almost US $3 of every US $10 spent. North America and Western Europe each account for just over one-fifth of the total spent. They are followed by Western Europe (21.1 per cent) Latin America (12.1 per cent) and Middle East and Africa (7.7 per cent) of the total sales.

According to the report, in 2017, Coca Cola and Pepsi have had a brand value of US$35-45 billion and US$10-15 billion respectively.

Brands like Red Bull, Nivea, Colgate, Sprite, Gillette and Fanta which are also common in Uganda were ranked sixth, nineth, 11th, 13th and 20th respectively.

The report says since the 2014 data, retail sales of Coca-Cola and, Coca-Cola owned, Sprite have fallen in Latin America and Asia Pacific, but risen in North America, as the drinks giant pursues a strategy based on achieving higher value sales from each consumption occasion.

Meanwhile, Pepsi has seen retail sales fall in all three regions. However, increased sales in the Middle East and Africa helped solidify its global rank. Red Bull’s retail sales have risen strongly in China and the US since 2014 — these two countries by far its most important markets. Its rival Monster generates the vast majority of sales value from the US.

Nescafé, Pampers, Tide / Ariel and Huggies are all amongst the top 10 fmcg brands worldwide that do not belong to packaged food, beauty and personal care or soft drinks industries. The 10th ranked brand here, Always, resides at number 62 in the wider table. Mars’ leading position in the pet care category is clear, as it owns two of the three pet care brands to make it into the top 100 — Pedigree and Whiskas (31 and 68 in the overall ranking). However, the future may not be quite so assured for these two brands. Firmly mid-market for a number of years, they have been slowly losing share of global dog and cat food value sales as premium brands gain against them.

According to the report, Nivea is the most important brand owned by German company Beiersdorf, making up 86 per cent of its beauty and personal care sales in 2017. The brand is the global leader in skin care and sun care and is also present in deodorants, bath and shower products.